Cancer and malignancy therapies have included treatment with chemical toxins, radiation, and surgery. Genes known to be over-expressed or underexpressed in cancer are used for diagnosis of the disease and evaluation of a patient's progression with the disease and treatment.
The study of transcription has provided information about cell differentiation: early in the development of a cell lineage, transcription factors direct development along a particular pathway by activating genes of a differentiated phenotype. Differentiation can involve not only changes in patterns of expressed genes, but also involve the maintenance of those new patterns.
The genetic basis of mammalian development, and the genetic link between development and cancer has not been fully elucidated. There is a need in the art for knowledge of the key genes underlying mammalian cancer, particularly those also implicated in normal mammalian developmental processes.